Our latest Sri Lanka travel blog is about our longer than expected journey to Ella from Nuwara Eliya. We started the morning with a good breakfast in the King Fern Cottage guest house and ended the day on the train station platform in Ella. In between we went on a beautiful train ride in the hill country of Sri Lanka and enjoyed the spectacular views of the terraced tea fields. The ride was long, but beautiful and when we reviewed the pictures and video, we were filled with the nostalgic desire to return. Queenie mentioned we should go back to Sri Lanka and spend more time in the Hill Country. Not a bad idea!
Queenie on her way
Our last post left off with us not having the best of nights in our guest house. We didn't get a lot of rest. In the morning we got out of bed and notified the front desk that we had yet to check out and would need transport to the train station to get to Ella. The receptionist was helpful and arranged for a tuk tuk and also sorted out our breakfast for us. Once we were packed and full, the tuk tuk arrived and we jumped on board for a 45 minute journey from the guest house to the station in the small village of Nonu Oya. The station (as you can see below) is built in the middle of a picture perfect countryside.
Nonu Oya Station (by Queenie)
We bought the tickets, found our train and duly boarded. Our train did not have an Engine yet so we had no choice but to hangout on the station waiting for the engine to come along. We waited on the train and ambled around the plaftorm for a bit taking pictures (and made some last bathroom calls) until the engine arrived and was safetly coupled onto the carriages. And then we were off (surprisingly on schedule at 9:30am).
Waiting to Leave (by Queenie)
Friendly Locals
Video of our Train Journey
The train journey starts in a small village of Nanu Oya and as you can see, has many beautiful views of the hill country.
Beautiful Views and Scenery
As soon as we left the station we went straight into the tea fields. It was beautiful. Most of the trip we spent gazing out of the window looking at the green tea plantations and the beautiful views of the valleys and mountains. The views were specatacular. The train itself was definitely not express and was more like a regular local train. Nevertheless we ambled along the tracks for the next few hours until we arrived in Ella in the mid-afternoon. When travelling through these mountains amongst the tea plantations, one gets the feeling that in many ways, this part has a lot in common with the tea growing parts of Taiwan (except that Taiwan doesn't have second generation tea pickers working the land). Some of the tea plantations we passed through I believe were originally owned by Thomas Lipton, the founder of Lipton tea.
As soon as we left the station in Nanu Oya we were treated with wonderful views of tea plantations like the one shown below.
Tea Plantation near Nanu Oya
It seemed no matter how far from Nonu Oya we went on the train, we were always among the beautiful green tea fields of Sri Lanka's hill country.
More views of the plantations
Most of the grunt work on the plantations, that is the tea pickers, are Tamil's brought over specifically to work on the plantations as they work very cheaply compared to the Sri Lankan people. Some of these Tamil plantation workers, we were told, we second or even third generation workers.
Tamil Tea Pickers in the Distance
The tracks were cut into the hill sides and the train often found its way drifting through tunnels to get avoid climbing higher mountain passes
Mountain Side with Tea
Of course, since the train was cut into the side of the mountain, we also had some wonderful views of the deep valleys in the Hill Country.
Valley's in the Hill Country
Railway Strike
Train Rolls On
After we arrived in Ella we discovered how fortunate we to be able to get the train because that same afternoon, all the railway workers in Sri Lanka went on strike. The issue was resolved fairly quickly apparently but all the trains running on the line we took were stopped for the afternoon. We found out later from an Australian couple we met on the train (and later bumped into in the South of Sri Lanka) that they had planned to go to Ella for a day trip from Nuwara Eliya. Of course their first problem was the length of the train ride but their second problem was that in the afternoon there were no trains running so to get back they had to get a very expensive and long tuk tuk ride to Nuawara Eliya from Ella.
The Mysterious Places, and a bathroom break
Train Station at Bandarawela
During the train ride we passed through many beautiful villages with and exotic and delightful sounding names Bandarawela, Idalgashinna and Haputale. We wished we could have the time to stroll around these towns and stroll around the plantations for a day or two but unfortunately the train just rolled on. The towns were small and there didn't seem to be a lot to do in these places except chill out and relax (unless of course you are a farmer or tea picker). But still, the towns looked like wonderful places to visit to get away from things and the pace of life.
We did stop at a few of these stations along the way. At one of them most of the people traveling to Ella were in dire need of a bathroom break. So many of them jumped off the train and made a mad dash for the bathroom. What amused us was that the train engineer actually counted how many people made a dash for the bathroom and waited until they were all back on board the train before heading on his way: a typical laid back way of life in the hill country of Sri Lanka.
We did stop at a few of these stations along the way. At one of them most of the people traveling to Ella were in dire need of a bathroom break. So many of them jumped off the train and made a mad dash for the bathroom. What amused us was that the train engineer actually counted how many people made a dash for the bathroom and waited until they were all back on board the train before heading on his way: a typical laid back way of life in the hill country of Sri Lanka.
The School at Idalgashinna
Arriving in Ella
After more than a few hours (closer to five as I recall) we finally started to see Ella come into view. Of course at the time we didn't know but neither were we particularly anxious to arrive. But finally the train trip did end. It was good to arrive and be able to get off the train and stretch our legs. We were thankful to have had the opportunity to take this train ride. Of course, we could have caught the train to Ella directly from Kandy and skipped out Nuwara Eliya but even though we didn't enjoy Little England as much as we thought we would, it was worth the effort and the extra day. We spent a day in Ella but, due to my illness, would be forced to leave for lower altitudes and warmer weather.
More from Sri Lanka
- Pettah Market, Colombo, Sri Lanka 2012
- Beautiful Sunset at the Galle Face Hotel Sri Lanka 2012
- Monkey Trainer and Snake Charmer in Sri Lanka
- Train Ride to Kandy from Colombo, Sri Lanka, 2012
- Scenes from Kandy, Sri Lanka, 2012
- Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, Kandy
- Kandayan Dancing - Kandy, Sri Lanka - 2012
- Elephant Ride at the Millennium Elephant Foundation
- The Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, Sri Lanka 2012
- Bus Ride to Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka, 2012
- Nuwara Eliya - Sri Lanka's Little England
- Train to Ella, Sri Lanka
- Elephant in Yala, Sri Lanka 2012
- Turtle Eggs in Tangalle, Sri Lanka, 2012
- Lost (and found) Bag in Matara, Sri Lanka - 2012
- Weherahena Temple in Matara, Sri Lanka
- The Unawatuna Beach Dog Wash - Sri Lanka
- Dancing in Galle, Sri Lanka
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